Avid Bioservices Inc (CDMO)

[Fire Fox]

Any comment on this interesting [NYT] article?

Yes. I was glad to see that the difference between the Bavi MOA and the PD-1 MOA has already been identified by Andrew Pollack who wrote the NYT article. The article states towards the end:

So if the immune system is so effective, why doesn’t it cure cancer on its own? One reason is that cancerous cells are the body’s own cells, though mutated, and might not be recognized by the immune system as foreign. Another is that the tumors act to suppress the immune system.

Much of the previous attempts at cancer immunotherapy have focused on the first problem—trying to train the immune system to recognize the tumor and attack it.

The PD-1 drugs tackle the second problem of immune system suppression. How many cancers this will work on is still unclear.

Mr. Pollack recognizes the point made in my Post 122114, namely, “PD-1 works by bringing more firemen (i.e. killer T-cells) to the fire but does nothing to block the source of the flames and body’s ability to recognize that flame as a pathogen next time it appears.”

How do we we know that Bavi is successful in solving the first problem Pollack identifies, i.e. getting the immune system to recognize the tumor as foreign? Answer: Because Thorpe said so in the AACR Abstract quoted in my Post 122114. Here’s the quote again from this year’s AACR Abstract:

"Antibody treatment reduced the presence of myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) in the tumors and caused macrophages to repolarize from the immunosuprressive, proangiogenic M2-like state into a tumoricidal M1-like state. ... Thus, PS-targeting antibodies appear to reactivate innate immunity in tumors which could hold tumor development in check." www.peregrineinc.com/images/stories/pdfs/yi_2013.pdf

“Holding tumor development in check” by “reactivating innate immunity” is the Holy Grail of immunotherapy that Pollack refers to as “training the immune system to recognize the tumor and attack it.” According to Thorpe, this is what Bavi does. By contrast, Pollack explains that “PD-1 drugs tackle the second problem of immune system suppression” by releasing the brakes on the production of tumor-fighting killer T-Cells.

Bottom Line: The good news is this: If a NYT journalist can understand the difference between an immunotherapy drug that unblocks the suppression of killer T-Cells (PD-1) and one that recognizes the tumor as a pathogen (Bavi), then you can be sure that this distinction is already part of this year’s narrative at ASCO and is a distinction that is well recognized by the BPs with whom SK and Garnick are talking partnership this week.

Be patient. The writing is on the wall. It's inevitable now that the dots will be connected and Bavi's distinctive MOA will be recognized and celebrated.